Johnson: Grasshoppers are back en masse

Perhaps you’ve seen them, perhaps not. After all, at this point they are still relatively tiny and unnoticeable until one walks through tall grass and they rise up and jump away in clouds of popping sounds.

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But that will change.

It’s already begun with some older hatchlings, and in a couple more weeks the bulk of them will reach adulthood, at which point they will be difficult to ignore.

Grasshoppers are no strangers to the area and any given summer they feast on the grasses the High Plains are made of, but this year those grasses are looking a tad busier than most.

In 2014, northern parts of the state experienced such large population bursts they made national news when clouds of grasshoppers grew large enough to appear like massive rain activity on weather radars.

Though researchers in the state have said the numbers could be fewer this year, they’ve been quick to point out climate change has made grasshopper patterns hard to predict, a valuable disclaimer, since reports of invasions are already starting to make the news again.

One thing is certain, if things in the High Plains continue on the current path and the countless nymphs that are clinging to the rough grasses continue to thrive, these parts could be hopping pretty soon.

Initially, they will stick to the wild grasses on the outskirts, but as those resources are depleted they will likely move toward the lush gardens and lawns of more populated areas.

Large populations may appear biblical, however, grasshopper numbers are predominately dictated by weather — dry winters fail to kill off eggs and wet spring seasons give the hatchlings plenty to live for.

As such, droughts and mild winters quite often serve as precursors to the emergence of hordes of the hopping, flying insects that at times move en masse, consuming all vegetation in their path.

A handful of the jumping critters are known simply as grasshoppers. Put them together in a swarm that moves and feasts together with the appearance of a shared mind, and they come to be known as locusts.

Capable of flying miles each day, in the course of their short two-to-three month lives – typically spanning the summer months — they devour crops and vegetation, preferring tender green plants but willing and able to eat whatever is available.

Unless dealt with in the very early stages, grasshoppers are minimally affected by insecticides, which kill the beneficial insects in the area but only cause them to fly away and return when the coast is clear.

As daunting and destructive as millions of grasshoppers are, they are not, by any means, invincible.

While human efforts to control them are largely ineffective, the greatest enemies of grasshoppers come from the natural world, which curbs their numbers with fungal and bacterial diseases, parasites and cold weather.

They also make for good eating, providing feasts for birds, predatory bugs and a host of other creatures that enjoy the crunch — because when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade.

Historically, when grasshoppers have swarmed and eaten the crops humans need to sustain themselves, the best revenge has been to consume the guilty, which, incidentally, are said to provide decent nutrients and supposedly taste pretty good fried.

They are even considered a delicacy in some areas of the world where they are regularly smoked, salted, dried or dipped in chocolate. If, however, one is not interested in acquiring a taste, the best remaining option is to cover valued plants with chew-proof screens, wait for the natural world to correct the imbalance and hope for a snowy winter to come.

Sharna Johnson is a writer who is always searching for ponies. You can reach her at:

[email protected]